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BATTLE ARENA PLAYER GUIDE
Hello and welcome!  If you're reading this then you're probably interested in the Battle Arena bot. You may have noticed that there is a !help command built into the bot, but I'm writing this thread so that everyone will have an idea of what to do and how to do the various commands that are within the bot explained in better detail.

OVERVIEW (i.e. WHAT IS THIS?)
The bot is an mIRC game in which you join and kill monsters and bosses to gain orbs and new weapons/skills/techniques.  It's similar to DMC, as that's really the inspiration I drew from when I started working on it, but it includes more than just DMC monsters/bosses/weapons/items.   The whole purpose was to make an mIRC game that is completely automated in terms of the battle system. There doesnft need to be a DM around to do !next and control monsters, like in my other major mIRC bot ("Kaiou").

Here players join the battle when the bot announces an open battle. After a few minutes, it will generate monsters/bosses and have them join the battle and the battle will start. When itfs a monsterfs or bossf turn, they will automatically do their things. When itfs the playerfs turn, therefs a few commands you can do (attack with a weapon, attack with a technique, do a skill, use an item). If the player idles for too long the bot will force their turn and skip over them. This is done so that someone canft disappear for an hour and cause the battle to drag on forever.

Therefs a bunch of weapons that can be bought and each weapon has a few techniques attached to them. Unlike in Kaiou, you canft make your own techniques but rather have to buy them using red orbs that you earn from battle. You buy weapons using black orbs when you obtain via winning boss fights and being alive at the end of one.

That's really the gist of what Ifve been working on thus far.

One more thing to mention here in the "overview" is that the bot is currently unbalanced.  New players will probably find themselves dying a lot while older players will probably dominate almost everything (to a point).   Some weapons are overpowered, others aren't strong enough.  The bot is only on version 2.0 so hopefully things will improve in those areas later on down the road.


STARTING OUT (i.e. how do I join and what do I do first?)
So you've decided to join the bot.  Great!  How do you go about doing that and what are you supposed to do at first?

First things first, the command to join the game is !new char

When you join you will receive a private message from the bot that looks something like this:

<BattleArena> You enter the arena with a total of #### red orbs to spend.
<BattleArena> Your password has been set to xxxxx and it is recommended you change it using the command !newpass xxxx newpasswordhere in private or at least write the password down. Passwords cannot be recovered!

The amount of red orbs (which is the main currency in this game) will be based on how many other players are in the game and what level they are.  You will receive an average to help newer players not be so far behind the rest of the players.

The password will be randomly generated.  The bot tells you the next command you should do next:   !newpass.  It is recommended you change your password immediately so that you don't forget the randomly generated one.  No one can retrieve your password.

Why do you need a password?  Before you can join in the game you need to ID into the bot.  This is to prevent someone else from playing with your character.  In private with the bot you need to type !id password and you will be logged in if your password is correct.

With that you can finally start using more commands!

Some basic commands you may want to check out:

!hp - Tells you how much health you have left

!tp - Tells you how much technique points you have.

!orbs - Tells you how many black and red orbs you have.

!allied notes - Tells you how many Allied Notes you have collected. Allied notes are used in the shop for certain items.

!level - This will tell you what your estimated level is.  Your estimated level is based on the core 4 stats (str, def, int and spd).  In order to increase your level, increase those four stats.

!weapons - This will return a list of all the weapons you own along with the current level of the weapon.  For example:  Fists(1) means you have level 1 fists.

!techs - Will return a list of techniques you know along with the level of the technique.  Example: DoublePunch(1) means you have level 1 DoublePunch.

!items - Will return a list of the items you own and how many of each item you own.  Example: potion(2) means you own 2 potions.

!accessories - Will return a list of any accessories you own and which one you have equipped.

!wear accessory name - Will allow you to equip the accessory.

!remove accessory name - Will allow you to remove an accessory.

!armor - Will return a list of any armor pieces that you own.

!wear armor name - Will allow you to wear a piece of armor.

!remove armor name - Will allow you to remove a piece of armor that you're wearing.

!look - Will allow you to see what you're wearing.  You can also do !look person to look at someone else.

!status - Will return the current status of your character.  (like poisoned, stunned, that sort of thing).

!equip weapon - This will allow you to swap weapons on the fly at any time.  Of course you must actually own that weapon to swap to it.

!desc - Will display your character description to the channel.

!cdesc desc - Will let you change your character description to the channel.

!skill desc - Will let you change the description of a skill that you own.  Example: !skill desc MightyStrike puts all his power into this mighty strike!

!setgender male/female/neither  - If you're playing as a different gender than male, set it here.

!view-info tech/item/skill/weapon name - This command will display information on techs, items, skills, and weapons.  Here's an example of the fists weapon:

<BattleArena> [Name fists] [Weapon Type HandToHand] [# of Hits  2]
<BattleArena> [Base Power 1] [Cost 0 black orb(s)] [Element of Weapon none]
<BattleArena> [Abilities of the Weapon DoublePunch, ShoulderTackle, SpinningAttack, AsuranFists]
<BattleArena> [Weapon Description It's your fists. They are not detachable..]

!battle stats - This command will tell you how many battles have been fought, wins/losses and the current winning/losing streak.

!style - This command tells you which style you have equipped, which styles you own, and how much XP you have into the current style.

!style change name - This command will change your style.

/me gives # item to person - You can give items/accessories to other players using this command.

!view battle save - If you've saved a streak levels to your file, you can see what it is here.

!save battle streak - Save the current battle streak to your file so that you can reload it later.  Consider this as a way to "save your game" if you have to go and want to resume on the same streak later.  You can only save a streak once an hour.

!reload battle streak - Reloads the saved battle streak from your file to the bot.  In order for a streak to be reloaded there can't be any winning streaks (i.e. it has to be a losing streak).  Upon reloading, the old saved streak will be erased from the file.

!conquest info - This will display the current information on the current conquest period (and who won the last conquest tally, if available)

!conquest points - This will display the current conquest point situation for the conquest period.

!dragonballs - This will display the current dragonball information.

!stats - Tells you your stats.

Here's a quick explanation of the stats:

HP: health.  When this hits 0 you're out of the battle.

TP: technique points, basically MP in other games.  To perform a technique you need TP.

Strength: How strong you are. Melee attacks use this.

Defense: How much damage you'll block.  Defense is used for all types of attacks.

Intelligence: How much damage your techniques will do, plus how well you can block other techniques (this will be added with defense on defending).

Speed: How fast you are.  This affects when you get your turn in battle.


** DCC Chat exclusive commands

These commands will only work if the bot is running in DCC Chat mode.

!toggle battle chat - This will allow you to toggle the battle chat on or off.  When set to on you will see the battle stuff even if you're not in the battles.  When off, you must join battles to see how the battles are going.

!who's online - Will tell you who's logged into the game.


THE SHOP
The next thing you should do is go familiarize yourself with the shop.  You'll be using this shop a lot as it's the way to gain new weapons, new techniques, new items, and to upgrade your stats.

First things first, use this command: !shop

The bot will message you with something like this:

<BattleArena> ::[Welcome to the Shop]::
<BattleArena> The shop is where you can exchange orbs for upgrades, new items and techniques. But be forewarned, every time you purchase something your "shop level" will increase and raise the price of everything except items and new weapons.
<BattleArena> Commands: !shop list <items/techs/skills/stats/weapons/styles/orbs> and !shop buy <items/techs/skills/stats/weapons/styles/orbs> <what to buy> (Remember to remove the < > from the command when using it)
<BattleArena> Your current shop level is ###


The "shop level" is basically the current level of the player.  Every time you purchase something that isn't a new weapon or an item, your "shop level" will increase.  Shop level affects the price of everything except those two things that I mentioned.  In other words, you need to plan out your character carefully or you will find yourself out of red orbs or the price of something you really want being slightly more than you can afford.

Next up you can try out the list command for the various things.

!shop list items
!shop list techs
!shop list skills
!shop list skills active
!shop list skills passive
!shop list skills resists
!shop list skills killertraits
!shop list stats
!shop list weapons
!shop list styles
!shop list orbs
!shop list ignitions
!shop list portal
!shop list misc
!shop list gems
!shop list alchemy

Most things in this game are purchased using red orbs. Red orbs are acquired by defeating enemies via participating in battles and found within red chests.  Weapons and Ignitions require black orbs. Black orbs are acquired by surviving a successful boss battle or found randomly in gold chests.  Portal Items require special seals, rather than orbs, to purchase.  The seals are found in chests and off of random enemies.  Finally, gems and alchemy items are purchased using Allied Notes.  Allied Notes are a special currency that you can acquire by defeating the foes found within the portal items.


So let's say you want to upgrade your HP (at least one or two upgrades in HP is recommended).  You can do it like this:

!shop buy stats hp

The bot will automatically take care of the transation and send you a message like this:

<BattleArena> You spend ### red orbs for +50 to your hp!
<BattleArena> Your Shop Level has been increased to #.#

As you can see, you've gained 50 HP but your shop level has increased by .1.   The next time you go to make the same purchase you will find that it costs a little more red orbs.

** Note: You cannot use the shop while in battle.  If a battle is going on and you're NOT in it, you can still use the shop as normal.

Another thing to note: the !shop list techs only shows you the techniques that are available for the current weapon you have equipped.  So if you have your fists equipped you won't see the technique list for Rebellion, for example.  In order to see the other techniques and their prices you have to equip that weapon (or you can use !view-info to look at the weapon and get a list of techniques for that weapon).

If you're looking at all the lists and your eyes are glazing over because you have no idea what all of it does or means, don't worry too much about it.  I'll explain all of the skills later on and you can always use !view-info to learn more information on anything you don't get.


BATTLE COMMANDS
Spent your red and black orbs on things and are now itching to try out your abilities and gain more orbs?  Battle is the only way you can do it, so let's talk about that.

I'm sure you've already seen this, but periodically the bot will be spitting messages out in channel that look like this:

<BattleArena> * A battle will begin in 3 minutes.
<BattleArena> A dimensional portal has been detected. The enemy force will arrive in 2 minutes. type !enter if you wish to join the battle!

That means a battle is about to begin.  If you want to take part in the battle use the !enter command and you will be entered.  As long as 1 player joins the battle the battle will happen.  If no players join the bot will say this message:

<BattleArena> There were no players to meet the monsters on the battlefield! The battle is over.


When the two minutes up the bot will calculate how many players have joined and pick a random type of battle.  There's four types currently:

Orb Fountain Battle (10% chance of happening)
This battle is simply to let players gain orbs.  An Orb_Fountain monster will join.  The fountain can't fight back, so feel free to wail on it.

Boss Battle (10% chance of happening at random, 100% on certain streak levels)
One, or more, boss(es) will be picked from a list of bosses and it will join the battle.  Players have to work together to defeat this terrible foe.  Upon victory everyone who's still alive will receive a black orb and the person who's the most stylish will receive an item (usually; but more on style later).

Doppelganger Battle (only appears on winning streaks 10-75)
Evil doppelgangers of all participating players will be generated and the heroes will be forced to fight themselves.

Warmachine Battle (only appears on winning streaks 10-300)
The monsters will build a large tank-like boss that will roll out onto the battlefield for the players to fight.

Demon Wall Battle (only appears on winning streaks 300-600)
A special evil demon wall will appear and teleport the players to a special battlefield.  In this battlefield the players have 10 turns to defeat the wall before they're crushed to death (instant loss if turn 11 starts).

Elder Dragon Battle (only appears on winning streaks 600-5000)
A special randomly-created Elder Dragon will appear and attack the enemies.

Monster Battle (80% chance of happening)
As expected, this is the most common type of battle.  The bot will generate a number of monsters (the number depends on how many players join the battle) and will add them to battle.  The object is to defeat them all.

At the end of all three types of battle you will receive red orbs (lose/win/dead/alive).  The amount of red orbs will vary, but to get more you have to defeat monsters and be stylish about it.

When the battle begins you will see something like this:

<BattleArenaTest> [Turn #: 1][Weather: rainy] [Battlefield: underwater cavern]
<BattleArenaTest> [Battle Order: Iyouboushi, Enchanted_Bones]

The bot will randomly change the weather (which affects magic), battlefield (certain monsters only show up on certain battlefields) and the monster(s) will join the battle.  Afterwards the battle will commence.   The Battle Order tells you the list of everyone that's in battle and what order they will attack in.  Take note of how the monsters' names are spelled and listed (i.e. if it has an underscore or not) as you'll need this to attack the monster.


When it's a monsters' turn, the AI of the bot will automatically control the monster and let it attack or use a technique.

[13:41] <BattleArena> Enchanted Bones leaps at Iyouboushi and slashes several times before rolling to the side before Iyouboushi can react.
[13:41] <BattleArena> The attack did 37 damage

When it's your turn you have a few options.  Here's the commands:

/me attacks monster
This command will allow you to perform a melee attack using your weapon.  Some things to note here: some weapons have elemental properties that might affect damage (some monsters are weak to certain elements) and some weapons are multi-hit and may do more than 1 hit per attack.  All single-hit weapons have a small chance of performing a double hit in battle.

/me uses his/her/its technique on monster
For example:  /me uses his DoublePunch on monster.
This command will perform a technique on a monster assuming you ( A ) know the technique ( B ) have enough TP to perform the technique.  As with weapons, some techniques have elemental properties that might affect damage.  There's also a lot of different kinds of technique types in this bot.  Included are status (like inflicting a target with poison), AOE (area of effect, hits all opposing targets on the battlefield), magic (affected by the weather and elemental strengths/weaknesses), and suicide (kills the user).

/me goes boost/Ignition
This is the command to use your weapon boost or your Ignition, if you have any.  Weapon Boosts will not wear off on their own but are considerably weaker than Ignitions, which require IgnitionGauge to use.  For an example of the weapon boosts: Zangetsu has the "TensaZangetsu" technique which is a boost.  Once you learn the technique you can use  /me goes TensaZangetsu when you have Zangetsu equipped to perform the boost. You do not need to keep the weapon on to keep the boost (so you can swap to Zangetsu, use TensaZangetsu, then swap back to any other weapon you own).  for Ignitions you must first purchase one in the shop (via black orbs) and you must purchase some IgnitionGauge (using red orbs).  Your IgnitionGauge will fill up by +1 at the end of every battle or +1 every time you die.  Once you have enough IgnitionGauge to use the Ignition, you use /me goes ignitionname to activate it.  Every turn your IgnitionGauge will deplete and if you do not have enough to keep the ignition on, you will revert.

/me reverts from Ignition
If you want to turn an Ignition off before your IgnitionGauge is empty, use this command.

!use item on target
If you have any items and wish to use them, this is how you do it.  For example, you can use a potion to restore some of your (or an allies') HP.  To do that you would use !use potion on yournamehere/targetnamehere.   Some items cannot be used on yourself (battle items) and some items can't be normally used on monsters (healing items can only be used on monsters if the monster is a zombie).

/me taunts monster
This will cause your character to taunt the monster.  Your character will gain +1 str and a bunch of style points for taunting, while there's a few different things that can happen to the monster.  The monster may either gain str or int, or may actually lose a little str and int.

Or you can use a skill.

There's a bunch of different skills in this bot and they all have their own commands.  Here's a few to give you an idea: !bloodboost, !sugitekai, !mightystrike.

I'll go into skills later on.

Now you can go out there and battle the forces of darkness.

At the end, win or lose, you will receive some red orbs for your efforts.  Here's an example of victory:

[13:46] <BattleArena> The Battle is Over!
[13:46] <BattleArena> The forces of good have won this battle!
[13:46] <BattleArena> Players have been rewarded with 1245 red orbs for their victory!


Here's a small note about monsters in this bot:
Monsters are leveled based on the current winning streak.  And the amount of damage you will do to a monster is partially based on the level difference between you and your foe.  If you're a higher level, you should be doing more damage to the monster, and vice versa.  If you find yourself losing battles a lot, increase your four core stats (str, def, int, and spd) to increase your level and hopefully make the monsters easier to defeat.


SKILLS
** As of June 6, 2013.

There are four types of skills in this bot: Passive Skills that are always on, Active Skills that have commands, Resists that help you resist against various status types found in the bot and Killer Traits that help you deal more melee damage to certain monster families.  Each skill has a maximum level that you can obtain in it. Some active skills can only be used once every certain number of minutes.  Of course you must first purchase the skills in the shop before you can use them.


Passive Skills
As mentioned, these skills are always on.

Swordmaster
This skill will increase damage done with sword and katana type weapons.  Increased levels in this skill will increase the damage.

Gunslinger
This skill will increase damage done with gun type weapons.  Increased levels in this skill will increase the damage.

Wizardy
This skill will increase damage done with stave and wand type weapons.  Increased levels in this skill will increase the damage.

MartialArts
This skill will increase damage done with hand to hand type weapons (such as Fists and the weapon Cerberus).  Increased levels in this skill will increase the damage.

Polemaster
This skill will increase damage done with spear type weapons.  Increased levels in this skill will increase the damage.

ClearMind
This skill will increase magical damage.  Increased levels of this skill will increase the damage.

DesperateBlows
This skill will enhance melee damage based on how much health you have left. At 10-25% health your attack will be 1.5x stronger, at 2-10% your attack will be 2x and at 2% or less health your attack will be 2.5x.

OrbHunter
This skill will allow you to obtain extra orbs at the end of battle.  The amount of orbs you get will be 5 * skill level.  Note that the bot won't tell you that you got extra orbs.

FieldMedic
This skill will increase the amount of health items will heal by 5*skill level.

Impetus
This skill will increase your chances of performing a critical hit by 1% each level in this skill.

BloodPact
This skill will allow you to activate summoning items and summon pets/summons to the field to fight for you.

Zen
This skill will increase the amount of TP you regain each turn by 5*skill level.

Haggling
This skill will increase the amount of orbs you can sell items back for by 20 * skill level.

WeaponBash
This skill will add a chance of inflicting the stun status after each melee hit. Note, if the target is immune to stun it will never take effect.  The chance is (skill level * 10)%.

Vogue
This skill will increase the amount of style XP you get at the end of battle.

Alchemy
This skill will allow you to use gems to create items. Each level of this skill will raise the success rate of creating an item by 1%.  Use !view-info alchemy list  to get a list of items you can craft and !view-info alchemy (item)  to view the ingredients necessary.

TreasureHunter
This skill will increase the odds of better colored chests at the end of battle and increase the odds that a player will receive an item from a normal monster battle (if the monster has an item to drop). This skill is culumulative with everyone who has it at the end of battle.  In order for this skill to take effect, you must be alive at the end of battle when a chest is created.

BackGuard
This skill will decrease the odds of a surprise attack against the players. This skill is cumulative with everyone who has it at the beginning of battle.

DivineBlessing
This skill will decrease the odds that a curse night will happen by 1% per level. This skill is cumulative with everyone who has it at the beginning of battle.


Active Skills
These are the skills that have commands that you need to do during battle to activate the skill.

Speed - !speed
This skill increases the user's speed when performed.  Increased levels increases the amount of speed when used.

Elemental Seal - !ElementalSeal
This skill enhances your next magical spell. The default reuse time is 10 minutes.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Mighty Strike - !MightyStrike
This skill enhances your next attack done with a weapon. The default reuse time is 10 minutes.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Mana Wall - !ManaWall
This skill reduces the next magic attack used against you to 0.  The default reuse time is 10 minutes.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Royal Guard - !RoyalGuard
This skill reduces the next physical attack used against you to 0.  The default reuse time is 10 minutes.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

*****  Neither Royal Guard nor Mana Wall will block normal non-magic techniques.  So if you use either one and still take damage, the monster used a tech.

Fullbring - !fullbring item on target
This skill allows you to draw out the souls within items and turn single-target items into AOEs.  Fullbring will consume the item you use.  (For example, if you use this skill on a potion, it will heal all allies on the battlefield).  All items have a fullbring level and you will need to match the skill level of the item level in order to use the skill on that item.

Sugitekai - !sugitekai
This skill allows you to get two turns on your next turn after using this skill.  The default reuse time is 15 minutes.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Meditate - !meditate
This skill will give you (level * 5) TP back to you instantly.  The reuse time is 5 minutes.

Conserve TP - !conserveTP
This skill will reduce the cost of your next technique to 0 TP. The default reuse time is 20 minutes.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Blood Boost - !BloodBoost
This skill will consume 100 HP to give you a (level * 2) boost to your STR.  The reuse time is 5 minutes.

Drain Samba - !DrainSamba
This skill will consume 10 TP to activate the "drain" status on the user, allowing him/her to gain HP back with every melee attack.  The amount of turns it will last is the level of your skill.  Note that the drain effect will not work on the undead (vampires, skeletons, zombies).  There is a 3 minute reuse period inbetween command uses.

Regen - !Regen
This skill will give you the HP regeneration effect.  Every turn you will regenerate (skill level * 2) HP back.  The effect will wear off when you reach your maximum HP or if you die.  There is a 3 minute reuse period inbetween command uses.

Kikouheni - !kikouheni weathertype
This skill allows the user to change the current weather.  The default reuse time is 10 minutes.  Increased levels of this skill will reduce the amount of time inbetween uses.  Valid weather types are: calm, bright, gloomy, rainy, stormy, snowy, windy, hot, and dry

ShadowCopy - !shadow copy
This skill will create a shadow clone of yourself to fight in battle with you as an NPC.  It can only be used once per battle, even if the clone dies.  The amount of HP the clone has is varient on whether or not you're using the Doppelganger style.

Utsusemi - !utsusemi
This skill will create 2 shadows that will absorb all types of attacks.  The default reuse time is 30 minutes.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Steal - !steal (target name)
This skill will let you try to steal an item or red orbs from a target.  Each level increases the percentage of success by 1%.

Analysis - !analyze (target name)
This skill will allow you to analyze a target. Each level of the skill gives you more detail about the target.

Cover - !cover (target)
This skill allows you to jump in front of an attack and cover an ally of your choosing.

Aggressor - !aggressor
When used, this skill will take (skill level * 10%) of your defense and add it to your strength but will leave your defense at 5.

Defender - !defender
When used, this skill will take (skill level * 10%) of your strength and add it to your defense but will leave your strength at 5.

Holy Aura - !holy aura
When used, this skill will extend the amount of time you have to fight before Darkness sets onto the battlefield by (skill level) minute(s).

Provoke
This skill allows you to provoke an enemy into attacking you instead of another target.

Disarm
This skill will let you try to disarm a target.  Each level increases the percentage of success by 1%.

WeaponLock
This skill will consume the item "Sokubaku" and lock a target's weapon for a number of turns.

Konzen-ittai
This skill, when active, will allow you to perform a Renkei by yourself with a non-magic technique that you use.

SealBreak
This skill will allow you to attempt to break a Melee-Only Ancient Seal placed upon a battlefield. Each level of the skill adds a 10% chance in being successful.  This skill will consume Hankai upon use.

MagicMirror
This skill will consume a MirrorShard to create a magical reflective barrier around you. The barrier will bounce a magic spell back to its caster.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Gamble
This skill will consume 1,000 orbs in exchange for a random event to happen.  Random events include, but are not limited to: gaining a random item, refilling the Ignition Gauge, restoring HP, taking damage, and inflicting a status effect upon yourself. Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Thirdeye
This skill will increase the odds of dodging attacks for 1-2 turns to 100%.  Increased levels decreases the amount of time inbetween uses.

Scavenge
This skill allows you to dig into the ground of a battlefield in an attempt to find a burried item. The items that can be found depend on the current battlefield. You may only use this skill one time per battle regardless if it's successful or not.  Increased levels of this skill increase the odds of finding an item.

JustRelease
This skill will unleash the stored Royal Guard meter at an enemy.  The damage done is (skill level)% of your Royal Guard meter.  The damage done with this skill cannot be completely resisted or dodged.  Royal Guard meter is built up by successfully blocking attacks using Royal Guard.


Resistance Skills
Like Passive skills, these skills are always on.  All of them do the same thing except with different status effects.  Each level you purchase of a resistance skill lowers the chance that that status effect will take effect on you by 1%.  The maximum is 100, meaning you're completely immune to that status effect**.

The list is:

resist-paralysis
resist-blind
resist-poison
resist-amnesia
resist-curse
resist-zombie
resist-slow
resist-stun
resist-stop
resist-petrify

** There is one exception.  Resist-Curse will not protect you when a terrible curse falls upon the battlefield (a rare event).

Killer Trait Skills
These special skills are always on and will increase damage done against a specific monster type by 1% per level (with a maximum of 10%).  They only work on monsters that are of that monster type.

Undead-Killer
Zombie-Killer
Demon-Killer
Orc-Killer
Yagudo-Killer
Quadav-Killer
Goblin-Killer
Dragon-Killer
Treant-Killer
Android-Killer (also works on machines suchas Metal Gear)
Crab-Killer
Worm-Killer
Bat-Killer
Lizard-Killer
Elemental-Killer
Slime-Killer


ITEM LIST
** As of May 21, 2013.

There's a bunch of different types of items in the bot currently:  Healing Items, Battle Items, Consumable (Skill) Items, +Stat Items, Summon Items, Shop Level Reducing Items, Gems, Keys, Accessories, Portal Items and Misc (Crafting) items.  Here's a list of each.

Healing Items
These are items that are beneficial to the targets.

Potion - 50 Red Orbs
The potion will heal roughly 20 HP when used.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 1 of that skill.

VitalStar - 100 Red Orbs
The VitalStar will heal roughly 60 HP when used.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 1 of that skill.

X-Potion - 250 Red Orbs
The X-potion will heal roughly 150 HP when used. It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 2 of that skill.

Senzu - 500 Red Orbs
The senzu will heal roughly 500 HP when used.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 4 of that skill.

SuperPotion - 3500 Red Orbs
The Super Potion will heal roughly 1500 HP when used. It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 5 of that skill.

MegaPotion - crafted only
The Mega Potion will heal roughly 5000 HP when used. It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 5 of that skill.

DustyWing - 100 Red Orbs
The Dusty Wing will instantly restore 20 TP when used. It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 1 of that skill.

Ether - 500 Red Orbs
The Ether will instantly restore 60 TP when used. It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 2 of that skill.

Tonic - 1000 Red Orbs
The tonic will instantly cure most status effects.  It will not cure Charm or Intimidation though.

GoldOrb - 8000 Red Orbs
This item, when used, will bestow the target with the "revive" status.  If the target dies in the same battle, he/she will be revived with 1/2 hp.

IgnitionStar - chests only
This item, when used, will instantly restore 10 Ignition Gauge.


Battle Items
These items can be used on monsters to deal damage or inflict status effects to them.

Holy_Water - 100 Red Orbs
The Holy Water will inflict roughly 45 light elemental damage to a target.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 2 of that skill.

Stop_Watch - 150 Red Orbs
The Stop Watch will attempt to inflict the 'stop' status effect on a target.  It can be used wtih Fullbring and requires level 3 of that skill.

Hour_Glass - 150 Red Orbs
The Hour Glass will attempt to inflict the 'slow' status effect on a target.  It can be used wtih Fullbring and requires level 3 of that skill.

Angon - Crafting Only
This item will attempt to inflict the "Defense Down" status on a target.

SauceAmpulla - Crafting Only
This item will attempt to inflict the "Strength Down" status on a target.

Red_Fang - 100 Red Orbs
The Red Fang will inflict roughly 45 fire elemental damage to a target.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 2 of that skill.

Thunder_Orb - 100 Red Orbs
The Thunder Orb will inflict roughly 45 lightning elemental damage to a target.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 2 of that skill.

Fire_Flower - 150 Red Orbs
The Fire Flower will inflict roughly 150 fire elemental damage to a target.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 3 of that skill.

Ice_Coin - 150 Red Orbs
The Ice Coin will inflict roughly 150 ice elemental damage to a target.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 3 of that skill.

Dynamite - Crafting Only
The dynamite will inflict roughly 310 fire damage to a target.  It can be used with Fullbring and requires level 4 of that skill.

HolyHandGrenade - Crafting Only
The Holy Hand Grenade item will inflict roughly 2500 damage to a single target.

Love_Potion - Special Boss Drop
This item will attempt to charm a target.

Grapling_Hook - 1000 Red Orbs
This item is used to grab an enemy to use that enemy as a protective shield in battle.  When successful, the "shield" will take damage if you're attacked instead of you.


+Stat Items
These items, when used, will increase your stats by a certain amount.  You cannot buy these items in the shop and must be found by defeating bosses and being the most stylish.  None of these items can be used with Fullbring.

To keep a little bit of mystery with these items, I'll give a list but won't say what they do.  If you want to know, get out there and defeat the bosses and be stylish about it.

List
Pizza
PotRoast
Ramen
Cavier
BisonDollar
DragonMeat
SuperMushroom
FireDragonWine
Ambrosia
FoieGras
KnowledgeSource
SoulPainting
FishAndChips
Slurm
CerberusMeat
SilverApple
DefenseSource
PowerSource
Herring
TurkeyLeg
BloodyHeart
RottingMeat


Consumable (Skill) Items
These items are used in conjunction with skills and will be consumed when the skill is used.

Shihei - 100 red orbs
This item is used to create shadows using the Utsusemi skill.  One shihei will produce 2 shadows.

Sokubaku - 100 red orbs
This item is used with the skill Weapon Lock to lock enemies' weapons for a number of turns.

Hankai - 1000 red orbs
This item is used with the Seal Break skill.

MirrorShard - 3000 red orbs
This item is used with the Magic Mirror skill.


Summon Items
These items only work when the user has the BloodPact passive skill.  The item is consumed upon use but will summon an ally to the battlefield to help fight.

DarkMagicianCard - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon the powerful mage Dark Magician.

BusterBladerCard - 1000 red orbs
This item will summon the warrior Buster Blader.

BlueEyesCard - 1000 red orbs
This item will summon the powerful Blue Eyes White Dragon.

FishOilBroth - 500 red orbs
This item will summon the crab Courier Carrie.

ElvishMedalllian - Cannot Purchase
This item will summon Eldora Adlanna to fight for the heroes.

AlexanderMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Alexander

BahamutMateria - Cannot Purchase
This item is will summon Bahamut

BahamutZeroMateria - Cannot Purchase
This item is will summon Bahamut Zero

CarbuncleMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Carbuncle

SolomonRing - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Doomtrain

LuckyBroth - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Faithful Falcorr

FenrirMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Fenrir

GarudaMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Garuda

IfritMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Ifrit

LeviathanMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Leviathan

RamuhMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Ramuh

ShivaMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Shiva

TitanMateria - 1000 red orbs
This item is will summon Titan


Shop Reducing Items
When used, these items will reduce your current shop level by an amount.  The shop level can never go below 1.0.

DiscountCard - 250,000 Red Orbs
This item will reduce your shop level by 10 points.

UltraDiscountCard - 500,000 Red Orbs
This item will reduce your shop level by 25 points.

Gems
Gems are used to craft items. They can be obtained via treasure chest or by killing a monster via the JewelSword weapon.

Zircon
Topaz
Emerald
Ruby
Sapphire
Opal
Onyx
Diamond

Keys
Keys are obtained at the end of battle after enough wins have been accumulated.  They open their respective colored-chests.

BlueKey
BrownKey
RedKey
OrangeKey
GreenKey
GoldKey
SilverKey
PurpleKey

Accessories
Accessories are special items that you can wear to bestow various bonus effects to your character.  Here's a list of current accessories.

Wizard's-Amulet
Blessed-Ankh
Blood-Ring
Purple-Belt
Brown-Belt
Black-Belt
Miser-Ring
Thief-Ring
Fool's-Tablet
Ribbon
Aztec-Goldcoin
Lucky-Rabbit'sFoot
VIP-MemberCard
Spear-Pin
Mugger's-Belt
Prism-Specs
4leaf-clover

Misc (Crafting) Items
These items are used with the alchemy skill to craft items or are seal items that are used to purchase portal items.

Ink
Paper
AshLog
Hatchet
IronOre
GoldOre
SilverOre
DarksteelOre
BrokenLance
SilverChain
FireGem
IceStone
WindRock
WaterJewel
EarthSphere
Glass
Cloth
RepairHammer
TigerFang
Sand
ByakkoSeal
GenbuSeal
SeiryuSeal
SuzakuSeal
KirinSeal
BeastmenSeal
KindredSeal

Runes
Runes are used to augment your physical melee weapons with new abilities.

EthRune
MtlRune
HiRune
GeRune
MaRune
TeRune
MeRune
SmnRune
DrnRune
ItmRune
RenRune
NinRune
IgDefRune

Portal Items
These items are used in battle to transport all of the players to a special battlefield to fight a tough boss monster.

AlliedTrainingPaper
WormFood
DemonBell
VirilityCan
IgnisFatuus
BanishingCharm
RottingOrb
GemOfTheNorth
GemOfTheEast
GemOfTheSouth
GemOfTheWest
GodSeal


ACCESSORIES
Accessories are special items that can be equipped.  The accessories themselves will grant bonuses or status effects on the wearer.  How do you get the accessories?  Well, they're rare boss drops from certain bosses or specially crafted.  Once you manage to find one, you can equip it with !wear accessory <accessory name>  If you ever decide that you no longer want to wear that accessory you can remove it with !remove accessory <accessory name>.


ARMOR
Armor can be found via chests, bosses or crafted. Most armor will bestow the wearer a stat increase and some pieces of armor will grant special bonuses in the form of augments that are always on.  Once you manage to find a piece of armor, you can equip it with !wear armor <armor name>  If you ever decide that you no longer want to wear that piece of armor you can remove it with !remove armor <armor name>.   There are five slots that you can wear armor on: head, body, legs, feet and hands.  The bot will equip the armor in the correct slot when you use the command, you do not need to specify.


AUGMENTS
Augments are a enhancements to your character.  There are three ways to receive an augment.  First, most Ignition boosts will activate a temporary augment while the boost is on. Second, some pieces of armor will haev augments always on while you're wearing the armor.  Finally, there's a way to enhance a melee weapon of your choosing. For this method, first you must get a rune.  Once you have one you can use !augment add (weapon) (rune)  To remove an augment: !augment remove (weapon)  Remember to get rid of the ( ) when using the actual commands. Use the command !augment by itself to see the augments you have equipped, !augment list (player) to see other player's augments.


TREASURE CHESTS
Treasure Chests appear at the end of victories after a certain number of wins have happened in a row (currently 25 wins).  At the end of battle a random colored chest will appear. Anyone who has the right colored key can open the chest but they have to act fast! Chests will disappear after 45 seconds of being unopened. Each color contains its own item pool but combined, chests can contain nearly every item in the game (including rare accessories and shop discount items).


STYLE POINTS
In the game Devil May Cry, the hero Dante must not only defeat the forces of evil but must do it with style.  The higher the style in the game, the more red orbs you would collect from their defeat.  I've decided to try and make my own little version of that in the bot.

Every time you do an attack of some kind it will add style points.  When you get hit, you will lose style points.  Repeating the same action and action over and over will reduce the amount of style points you accumulate per attack.  That is to say, you should mix it up a little.  Don't attack with your fists every turn you get.  That's boring.  Instead, use a technique, attack, switch weapons and attack with the new weapon, taunt.  Another way to increase your style points is to kill a monster/boss.  Killing a monster will greatly increase your style points.

If you're asking why you should even bother worrying about style points, it's because when a monster dies the style of the person who kills it will add a bonus to the amount of red orbs you get at the end of battle.  The higher the style, the more of a bonus you'll get at the end.  Also, in boss battles the person who ends up with the highest style points will normally receive a bonus item.

Here's a list of the style rankings in order:

Flat Out Boring!
Dope!
Cool!
Blast!
Alright!
Atomic!
Sweet!
SShowtime!
SSStylish!
SSSSmoking Hot Style!
Jackpot!
Maximum Style


PLAYER STYLES
In Devil May Cry 3 the hero Dante had his choice of a bunch of different styles to pick. Each style would give the player a little variety in moves you could do.  For example, there was the Trickster style that let you dodge things easier and the Swordmaster style that gave you extra combat moves with the various weapons.  Well, I've decided to try and add something similar to this bot.

To view your available styles use the command !style in the channel after you log in.   When you do, you will see something like this:

Iyouboushi is currently using the Trickster style. [XP: 36 / 500]
Iyouboushi knows the following styles: Trickster(1), WeaponMaster(1), Guardian(1)

You can swap styles any time outside of battle by using the command !style change name where name is one of the styles that you know (in this case, Trickster, WeaponMaster or Guardian).

<Iyouboushi> !style change Guardian
<BattleArena> Iyouboushi has switched to the Guardian style!

There are more styles available in the shop for you to purchase using black orbs.  Use !shop list styles to get a list of prices and !shop buy styles name to buy one.

Each style has a level [the (#) next to the name] and can level up by accumulating xp.  You get xp by being in winning battles and by killing monsters/bosses.  The amount of xp you get is pretty low though and the amount of xp you need to level the style up increases the higher the style's level.

So now you're wondering what the various styles are and what they do in-game.  Here's a list.

TRICKSTER
This style will enhance the amount of style points you get for taunting.  Higher levels of Trickster will increase the amount of style points you get.  It'll also give you a bonus to your speed when the bot generates the turn order.  Higher levels of the style will result in a bigger increase in speed, thus giving you a better chance of getting your turn earlier. When equipped with this style there's also a (style level)% chance of dodging attacks. Finally, it will enhance the steal % by a random amount (style level doesn't matter in this case, it's the same random chance each time).

WEAPONMASTER
The Weapon Master will enhance melee attacks of all weapon types.  It does this by increasing the random damage added onto every melee attack and by enhancing the mastery skill slightly.  The amount increases each time the style levels.

GUARDIAN
This style will decrease the amount of damage you take by a percent each level (up to 60% max).

SPELLMASTER
This will enhance magic by roughly 11% per level (up to 90% max).

DOPPELGANGER
This style will enhance your shadow clone ability, giving your clone more health.  The amount of health the clone gets goes up with each level of the style, up to 100%.

HITEN MITSURUGI-RYU
This still will enhance melee and tech damage done with katana weapons and enhance speed at battle turn generation.

QUICKSILVER
This style will allow you to access the !quicksilver command that freezes everyone except you in battle, effectively giving you an extra turn. You can use the !quicksilver command as many times as your style is currently leveled.


RENKEI SYSTEM
Renkei (˜AŒg) is Japanese for "link" or "cooperation".  This system is heavily borrowed from the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI in which you could link various weapon techniques together to create a Renkei, or a Skillchain (as they called it in the English version).  The version that I'm doing for Battle Arena is a bit more simplistic than FFXI.  In FFXI you had to have the correct linking techs (not all techniques could be linked together) and had to have a specific timing down in order to make it work.  Also, you could do more techniques to create better skillchains (you could link three together to create a level 3 skillchain, for example).

Because of the way mIRC works and how the battles are set up in Battle Arena, I immediately ditched the timing idea.  Forcing players to do stuff within a time limit on IRC is a really bad idea (I learned that first-hand with my first Battle Bot, Kaiou).  To simplify things, and make it easier for myself, I decided that all PLAYER techniques could link together--ditching the idea that only certain techniques could create skillchains. Techniques are rarely used to begin with and limiting them to linking with only other certain techniques would make the system pointless, I felt.

So here's how it's going to really work.  First off, each technique will be worth a "renkei" value.  The renkei value is what determines which renkei is performed.  Higher level renkeis will result in higher damage.  The damage that the renkei done will be a percentage of the total damage done by the techniques to create the renkei.  Two techniques are needed to create a renkei on a monster.  But there's a catch to that: when it's the monster's turn, the # of techniques used on the monster, the technique damage value, and the renkei value are all reset to 0.  "But Iyou! That means I can't self-skillchain when I'm soloing on here!"  Well, you can and here's how.  You have two options to self-renkei now.  First, you could use Sugitekai to give yourself two turns in a row then use a technique on both turns thus resulting in a renkei.  The other option is via the active skill called Konzen-Ittai.  This skill will double the technique number value.  Basically it means that 1 technique will be counted as 2, thus allowing you to self-skillchain without needing another person or using Sugitekai.

One thing to note though is that magic, status, and AOE type techniques will not cause a renkei to happen.  Mainly this is done to help prevent the bot from flooding out (especially on AOE techniques) but also because magic and status techniques are already sort of haxx to begin with.


IGNITIONS
Ignitions are more powerful boosts. You buy them in the shop for black orbs and they won't be too cheap.  Once you buy them you'll notice that you can't use them immediately because they require a certain amount of your Ignition Gauge to use.  You buy points into your maximum Ignition Gauge via the shop (also not too cheap when compared to the other stats you can buy).  You'll notice that your IG is not filled when you buy into the maximum. In order to fill the IG you have to be in winning battles or be killed by monsters.

Once you have enough IG to use the Ignition, you activate it the same way as you would a weapon boost: /me goes (name)

You'll notice that Ignitions have two special extras in addition to +stat gains: Augments and Effects.  Augments work just like weapon augments but they're only temporary until the Ignition is turned off. The Ignition effects are immediate and activated when you first use the Ignition. The effects will either affect yourself, your allies, or your enemies by usually inflicting a status effect.  You CAN manually stop the Ignition before running out of IG by using the command /me reverts from (name) on your turn.  Any effects that are activated when you use the Ignition are not lost when you revert manually (unless it's a one-turn type effect that would normally be over upon the target's turn anyway).


MONSTER LIST
** As of June 25, 2013.
Here's a list of monsters that are in the bot.

Acrobat
Air Elemental
Ancient Mummy
Anniversary Dwarf
Anniversary Gnome
ArchDemon Knight
ArchDemon Samurai
ArchDemon Warrior
ArchDemon Wizard
Baelfyr
Balrog
Bark Spider
Bear Shark
Bee
Bee Bear
Bigclaw
Bloodgoyle
Blue Bones
Blue Slime
Blue Medusa Head
Bone Soldier
Byrgen
Cactuar
Cave Tiger
Chimyriad
Citadel Bats
Combat
Vampire Count
Vampire Countess
Creeper
Crimson Slime
Cure Slime
Cursed Bishop
Cursed Mummy
Cursed Pawn
Cursed Queen
Cursed Rook
Cyberman
Dalek
Dark Knight
Dark Mummy
Dark Octopus
Decapiclops
Demon Knight
Demon Samurai
Demon Warrior
Demon Wizard
Demonic Succubus
Devil Manta
Dhalmel
Ding Bats
Dirt Eater
Drachenlizard
Dragoon Ghost
Earth Elemental
Elder Treant
Emerald Quadav
Enchanted Bones
Ermit Imp
Female Vampire
Final Guard
Final Starman
Football Zombie
Forest Giant
Gekko
Gekko Dwarf
Geyfyrst
Ghost Bomb
Ghost Samurai
Gnole
Goblin Berserker
Goblin Enchanter
Goblin Shaman
Goblin Smithy
Gold Medusa Head
Greater Pugil
Green Bones
Guardian Treant
Healing Slime
Heal Slime
Heraldic Imp
Highland Treant
Icefang Tiger
Ironshell
Kindred Knight
Kindred Samurai
Kindred Warrior
Kindred Wizard
Mad Piranha
Magnes Quadav
Male Vampire
Wooly Mammoth
Maneating Hornet
Metal Slime
Midnight Blue Slime
Minotaur
Moblin
Moonfang Warrior
Mud Pugil
Nightmare Hornet
Nightmare Vanguard
Ninja Assassin
Red Orb Fountain
Orcish Grunt
Orcish Gunshooter
Orcish Impaler
Orcish Predator
Orcish Wyrmbrander
Oxocutioner
Poison Slime
Poring
Pride Demon
Pugil
Purple Bones
Reaver
Red Bones
Red Slime
New Age Retro Hippie
Revenant
River Crab
Rock Eater
Rock Lizard
Ruby Quadav
Ruly Imp
Sabertooth Tiger
Samurai Ghost
Sandy Claws
Sapphire Quadav
Sea Pugil
Shrapnel
Sierra Tiger
Silver Medusa Head
Snow Giant
Snow Lizard
Snow Wight
Starman Deluxe
Ghost of Starman
Starman Junior
Stone Eater
Strolling Sapling
Succubus
Thunder Elemental
Treant
Ugly Knight
Undead Black Mage
Undead Corsair
Undead Dragoon
Undead Knight
Undead Monk
Undead Ranger
Undead Red Mage
Undead Samurai
Ungeweder
Unicorn
Volcano Wasp
Water Elemental
Wild Rabbit
Wooden Puppet
Wyvern
Yagudo Oracle
Yagudo Prior
Yagudo Prioress
Yagudo Scribe
Yagudo Summoner
Yagudo Zealot
Young Mummy
Zarklet
Zombie
Zombie Chef
Zombie Rockstar
Zu


BOSS LIST
** As of June 20, 2013.
Here's a list of bosses that are in the bot.

Absolute Virtue
Ahtu
Allied Scrub
Amon
Alpha Gnole Anders
Android X
Aris
Ashi
Ashmaker Gotblut
Astarte
Awahondo
Bahamut Fury
Bigmouth Billy
Bloody Bones
Brauner
Byakko
Cell
Cerberus
Chuckie
Count Bifrons
Crazy Jester
Cursed King
Cyberman Lord
Dalek Emperor
Daos
Dark Ixion
Death
Dracula
Dullahan
Dune Widow
Eldora Adlanna
Erim
Fafnir
Gades
Gaki
Garland
Metal Gear Ray
Metal Gear Rex
Genbu
Gilgamesh
Giygas
Gothmog
Guard Daos
Huu Xalmo the Savage
Ironclad Severer
Juggler Hecatomb
Jailor of Love
Jeffery
Jester
Jumbo Cactuar
Killer Rabbit
King Slime
Kirin
The Knights Who Say Ni
Leaping Lizzie
Legion
Leviathan Center Heart
Leviathan Left Heart
Leviathan Right Heart
Marchelute
Marquis Caim
Menos Grande
Metal King Slime
Morion Worm
Mother Brain
M.Bison
One-Eyed Gwajboj
Onki
Pallid Percy
Poison
Poisonhand Gnadgad
Puppet Master
Quetzalcoatl
Rainemard
Rasetsu
Ryukotsuki
Scorpion
Sea Horror
Seiryu
Shadow Lord
Shinryu
Smothered Schmidt
Suzaku
Stinging Sophie
Stubborn Dredvodd
Sub Zero
Three-Eyed Prozpuz
Tiamat
True Erim
Vampire Bat
Vergil
Scorched Yanthu
Za'Dha Adamantking
Zark

SEASONAL BOSSES
Evil Cupid
Evil Xmas Tree
Gobbles the Mad Turkey
Robot Santa


NPCS
NPCs are helpful allies that show up occasionally to help the forces of good win battles.  At the moment there's a 10% chance of them showing up normally.  If the players have been losing a lot (5+ in a row) they will show up 100% of the time.  NPCs will stay in battle until they die or until all players die.  In other words, NPCs won't keep fighting the good fight after all players are dead; at least one player must stay alive for the battle to continue.


ACHIEVEMENTS
Like most modern games, this game has a list of achievements that you can unlock through various ways.  I encourage everyone to try different things to unlock them all.  The rewards for unlocking them vary, but usually unlock bonus red orbs.  Sometimes you will receive items from the achievements or possibly even a full IG bar as a reward.  Here's a plain list of achievements.  No, I won't spoil how to go about actually unlocking them all--that's up to you to figure out!

Big Spender
Don't You Have A Home
Battle Arena Anon
Don't Forget Your Friends And Family
Boss Killer
Sir Dies A Lot
Make Money
Scardy Cat
Cheapskate
Can't Keep A Good Man Down
Monster Slayer
Pretty Gem Collector
Master Of Unlocking
Santa's Little Helper
Are You The Key Master
Now You're Playing With Power
Party Is Getting Crazy
Can't Touch This
Never Asked For This
Allied Scrub
Allied Soldier
GlassCannon
StoneWall
Blood Gone Dry
Ice Ice Baby
Disco Inferno
Blinded By The Light
Rock You Like A Hurricane
1.21 gigawatts
It's All Doom And Gloom
In Tune With Mother Earth
Time To Build An Ark
Hi Ho, Hi Ho
Blood Gone to Brain
You Bring the Monsters, I'll Bring the Weapons
Warbound
Fill Your Dark Soul With Light


MISC INFO
This section will talk about any misc stuff that I think players may want to know about.

First off, I'd just like to say.. don't sweat it if you die a lot at the beginning.  At this moment the bot is a bit unbalanced and monsters can be pretty rough towards new characters.  Plus there's a bunch of different types of monsters and some are harder than others (Final Guard, for example, has an extremely high defense and almost everyone will do 1 damage per hit to it).  There's no penalty for dying, so just roll with the punches (as they say).

Second, if battles drag on too long a "rage" system will kick in.  This is a concept that the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI employed on some of its higher level monsters/bosses to ensure that people don't sit and hold monsters for days at a time.  Basically what happens is when a time limit has been hit, the monster will grow to insane power to the point where no players will be able to defeat them.  Because I want battles to be ongoing and often, I've done something similar.  How long do players have to defeat the monsters?  Well, if it's a normal monster battle and the number of monsters is less than 3, players have 15 minutes.  If there's more than 3 monsters, players have 30 minutes.   If it's a boss battle players will get 20 minutes.

After the time elapses, the monsters' stats will be multiplied by 100 making them virtually impossible to kill (and will often one-shot everyone if it uses an AOE).