The King’s Gauntlet
As “side quests” go, nothing in Mousehunt is as elaborate or as massive as the King’s Gauntlet. While it takes a lot of time and effort to get through the gauntlet, it is ultimately for your own sake and not for any higher purpose. The Gauntlet serves one purpose- a distraction from regular questing in the form of lots of interesting mice and one really lucrative mouse at the end.
What’s especially great about the gauntlet is that you can work on it for a while, leave, and come back later. Different tiers of the gauntlet can only be completed when you have attained the right trap, which often comes at a higher rank. That means that it actually makes sense to complete a tier or two, leave and then come back when you’re a higher rank and have better traps.
This side quest is not meant to be difficult; it is meant to be a great episode in your journey that you get to complete piece by piece as you progress through the ranks. I hope you enjoy!
Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your outlook), an extraordinary disaster has just recently occurred. The Master Burglar mouse has stolen the King’s Crown Jewel! If you can just get the jewel back, the King may find it in his heart to let you in. However, how does one find this Master Burglar?
In order to find the master, you must start with the basics. By that, I mean the burglar mouse. The first step in getting into the King’s Gauntlet is to catch the burglar mouse. To do that, pick one of the locations where burglars are located: the Harbour, the Laboratory and the Bazaar. Equip your strongest trap and some brie cheese (burglars are partial to brie, and you’ll see more of them if you use it). You’re looking for them to drop a type of cheese known as gilded cheese. As the name somewhat implies, this cheese is coated in gold; what better cheese to entice a master burglar? To find the Master Burglar, head to either the Bazaar or the Town of Gnawnia and equip your cheese. The Master Burglar should come quickly; grab him and take the Crown Jewel back!
(If you want, you can skip the gilded cheese and just equip SB+; it’s simply a much more expensive option. Make sure to use it in the Town of Gnawnia or the Bazaar so you don’t waste your cheese!)
Once you’ve gotten the jewel back, head over to the harbour and speak with the cartographer. He’s been given permission by the king to give you a map to the King’s Gauntlet in exchange for the crown jewel, along with a fee of 50,000 gold. And with that, you’re good to go!
First, the Gauntlet is really not meant to be a challenge in terms of catch rate- you should have a great catch rate on every tier. The challenge lies in having the right trap and in finding your cheese.
Each tier’s mice are weak to one specific trap type, and as long as you use the right trap type, you should be able to catch the mice nearly 100% of the time. So let’s make this clear up front: If you don’t have the right trap type for a particular tier, don’t waste your cheese trying to catch them; wait until you have the right trap.
As for the cheese: You start on the first tier with whatever cheese you like. However, the mice on the first floor drop potions for the second floor. You can only attract second tier mice with that second tier cheese. Those mice then drop potions for the third tier, and you must make third tier cheese to attract third tier mice, etc.
What this means is that the entire gauntlet’s true challenge comes in collecting enough potions at the bottom to make it all of the way to the top. The drop rate of potions isn’t all that high, and as you get further into the gauntlet, you can convert less and less cheese with each potion.
With that in mind, there are two strategies that people use:
(For a really great graphical representation, check out this chart by Trevor Hastings of our Mousehunt Community. Of course, he recommends closer to 250 potions- up to you what you want to shoot for!)
The recommended trap is one that maximizes luck. The more luck you have, the more potions will drop, and since that’s the bigger challenge, focus purely on that. For hunters with no Ronza traps, try the NVMRC.
If you’ve got every trap available, the Partybot can combine luck AND an attraction bonus (useful if you’re not using SB+). But again, just focus on using the luckiest trap you have.
Use the same trap you used in tier 1.
For hunters with more options available to them, once again you want a high-luck trap. The Horrific Venus Mouse Trap is the best one available to you, although hunters lucky enough to have a Speaker, 2010 blastoff or Snow Barrage will do even better with those traps.
While the rank required to hunt here doesn’t change, your trap type does. You need a shadow trap now. Fortunately a master can go to Digby and purchase a Sinister Portal from the trapsmith. For hunters who have progressed a bit further, it goes without saying that the Clockapult of Time is your best bet.
Of course, the Chrome Nannybot isn’t too shabby, either.
And of course, if you happen to have the Kraken Chaos, well… so much the better!
The trap you need is the Ancient Box Trap. For your own sake, don’t attempt to catch the mouse without one. The LAST thing you want to do is use the wrong trap, miss the eclipse, and then have to go all the way back down to the first floor to start over again. That’s enough to give one nightmares…
And… well, that’s all there is to it! Good luck getting your eclipse, and have fun in the gauntlet! Remember, it’s here as a distraction: don’t let it get the best of you. If you get frustrated, just leave! It will be here when you get back.
What’s especially great about the gauntlet is that you can work on it for a while, leave, and come back later. Different tiers of the gauntlet can only be completed when you have attained the right trap, which often comes at a higher rank. That means that it actually makes sense to complete a tier or two, leave and then come back when you’re a higher rank and have better traps.
This side quest is not meant to be difficult; it is meant to be a great episode in your journey that you get to complete piece by piece as you progress through the ranks. I hope you enjoy!
Finding your way into the Gauntlet
The King’s Gauntlet is an exclusive area: not just everyone is invited to hunt there. It takes a special kind of hunter to get the king’s permission to run the gauntlet. In order to be that special someone that gets the king’s attention, you need to do something extraordinary.Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your outlook), an extraordinary disaster has just recently occurred. The Master Burglar mouse has stolen the King’s Crown Jewel! If you can just get the jewel back, the King may find it in his heart to let you in. However, how does one find this Master Burglar?
In order to find the master, you must start with the basics. By that, I mean the burglar mouse. The first step in getting into the King’s Gauntlet is to catch the burglar mouse. To do that, pick one of the locations where burglars are located: the Harbour, the Laboratory and the Bazaar. Equip your strongest trap and some brie cheese (burglars are partial to brie, and you’ll see more of them if you use it). You’re looking for them to drop a type of cheese known as gilded cheese. As the name somewhat implies, this cheese is coated in gold; what better cheese to entice a master burglar? To find the Master Burglar, head to either the Bazaar or the Town of Gnawnia and equip your cheese. The Master Burglar should come quickly; grab him and take the Crown Jewel back!
(If you want, you can skip the gilded cheese and just equip SB+; it’s simply a much more expensive option. Make sure to use it in the Town of Gnawnia or the Bazaar so you don’t waste your cheese!)
Once you’ve gotten the jewel back, head over to the harbour and speak with the cartographer. He’s been given permission by the king to give you a map to the King’s Gauntlet in exchange for the crown jewel, along with a fee of 50,000 gold. And with that, you’re good to go!
Hunting in the Gauntlet
The King’s Gauntlet is one location, but it consists of eight different levels. As a result, there are eight different strategies in this location: one for each tier.First, the Gauntlet is really not meant to be a challenge in terms of catch rate- you should have a great catch rate on every tier. The challenge lies in having the right trap and in finding your cheese.
Each tier’s mice are weak to one specific trap type, and as long as you use the right trap type, you should be able to catch the mice nearly 100% of the time. So let’s make this clear up front: If you don’t have the right trap type for a particular tier, don’t waste your cheese trying to catch them; wait until you have the right trap.
As for the cheese: You start on the first tier with whatever cheese you like. However, the mice on the first floor drop potions for the second floor. You can only attract second tier mice with that second tier cheese. Those mice then drop potions for the third tier, and you must make third tier cheese to attract third tier mice, etc.
What this means is that the entire gauntlet’s true challenge comes in collecting enough potions at the bottom to make it all of the way to the top. The drop rate of potions isn’t all that high, and as you get further into the gauntlet, you can convert less and less cheese with each potion.
With that in mind, there are two strategies that people use:
- Collect a few potions for the second tier and see how far they take you into the gauntlet. When you run out, go back down and try again.
- Collect a LOT of potions for the second tier and attempt to make it all the way to the final tier on your first go. To do this, shoot for about 100 tier 2 potions- it’s not guaranteed, but it’s a solid benchmark that seems to be working so far. I know I went in with 80 potions and wound up with an eclipse with cheese to spare, so 100 should get you going just fine! (NOTE: No promises on that; please no hate mail if I’m wrong!)
(For a really great graphical representation, check out this chart by Trevor Hastings of our Mousehunt Community. Of course, he recommends closer to 250 potions- up to you what you want to shoot for!)
Tier 1- Initiate
This first tier is the tier of Toy Mice. These mice are weak to physical traps, and can be attracted to any cheese. Due to the gold return on these mice, most people choose to use Swiss cheese. However, the impatient folk use SB+. You’ll lose tons of gold on each hunt, but you’ll get the maximum amount of mice.The recommended trap is one that maximizes luck. The more luck you have, the more potions will drop, and since that’s the bigger challenge, focus purely on that. For hunters with no Ronza traps, try the NVMRC.
If you’ve got every trap available, the Partybot can combine luck AND an attraction bonus (useful if you’re not using SB+). But again, just focus on using the luckiest trap you have.
Tier 2- Initiate
The second tier is the tier of rapscallions. Thieves, and the like. Once again, you want a physical trap, and this time you have to use the tier 2 cheese. It’s up to you whether or not you convert with SB+, but DEFINITELY use Swiss cheese rather than Marble.Use the same trap you used in tier 1.
Tier 3 & 4- Master
The third tier is the home of the warrior mice, and the fourth tier houses the musical mice. Finally we need a trap type not available to all hunters- you need a tactical trap. Fortunately masters who wish to tackle these tiers of the gauntlet can purchase the Venus Mouse Trap from the Great Gnarled Tree and equip it to great effect here.For hunters with more options available to them, once again you want a high-luck trap. The Horrific Venus Mouse Trap is the best one available to you, although hunters lucky enough to have a Speaker, 2010 blastoff or Snow Barrage will do even better with those traps.
Tier 5- Master
Tier 5 is the magical tier. From here on out, mice are really cool.While the rank required to hunt here doesn’t change, your trap type does. You need a shadow trap now. Fortunately a master can go to Digby and purchase a Sinister Portal from the trapsmith. For hunters who have progressed a bit further, it goes without saying that the Clockapult of Time is your best bet.
Of course, the Chrome Nannybot isn’t too shabby, either.
Tier 6- Legendary
If you haven’t been converting with SB+ yet, start doing so now- the gold return for each mouse is high enough to make the SB+ totally worth the cost. Tier 6 is home to the holy mice. Oddly, the best trap for them is the one typically designed to catch the “evil” mice of the game. Oh well! You need an arcane trap here, and whether you’re a newer hunter or an old hunter, the best trap is the Arcane Capturing Rod of Never Yielding Mystery. You could use one of the lower obelisk traps, but you need to get the ACRoNYM anyway- might as well get it before heading to this tier!Tier 7- Legendary
We’re almost done! Tier 7 is home to the evil mice, and home to mice that are weak to another trap type. This time it’s Hydro-type traps. Legendary hunters can equip the Harpoon Gun or Net Cannon to catch the fiend and necromancer, although to get the best results you’ll want the Ancient Spear Gun.And of course, if you happen to have the Kraken Chaos, well… so much the better!
Tier 8- Hero
Tier 8 is home to the final mouse- the eclipse. This mouse is worth a TON of points and gold. 379,000 points and 300,000 gold, to be exact. It’s a jaw-dropping number, and the best part is that as long as you have the right trap, you are almost guaranteed to catch it! No worrying about the mouse getting away!The trap you need is the Ancient Box Trap. For your own sake, don’t attempt to catch the mouse without one. The LAST thing you want to do is use the wrong trap, miss the eclipse, and then have to go all the way back down to the first floor to start over again. That’s enough to give one nightmares…
And… well, that’s all there is to it! Good luck getting your eclipse, and have fun in the gauntlet! Remember, it’s here as a distraction: don’t let it get the best of you. If you get frustrated, just leave! It will be here when you get back.
